Fifty years ago this year, Luverne’s radio stations first hit the airwaves.
KQAD signed on at 800 on the AM dial on March 1, 1971. Six months later, KQAD-FM, now KLQL-FM, took to the airwaves on Sept. 1, 1971, at 101.1.
“Both stations had KQAD call letters until the early ’80s when the FM station became KLQL, also known as K101,” said Joel Vis, the current general manager of both stations.
KQAD AM-FM then
According to the July 22, 1971, edition of the Star Herald, the new stations were owned by Siouxland Broadcasting Corporation.
Paul Hedberg, who also owned KBEW in Blue Earth, was the major stockholder, along with Luverne businessmen D.M. Lippi, Alan C. McIntosh, R.H. Swanson, Mort B. Skewes and Warren E. Schoon, who were also stockholders.
Harold Norman was the first general manager of the station. He was joined by six other employees at the start, including his son, Lee.
The studios and offices of the station on the hill one mile east of Luverne were built at that time to also include living quarters for the station manager and his family.
Also built at the same time were the twin radio towers still there today.
One tower broadcasts KQAD’s signal 150 miles in all directions.
The other tower blocks the signal to the northeast in order to avoid interference with WCCO’s powerful signal at 830, just 30 kilocycles above KQAD’s 800 signal.
“KQAD’s signal still points toward the south and west and doesn’t go as far to the northeast,” Vis said.
K101 FM’s signal, on the other hand, is 100,000 watts and reaches into four states.
The four-state coverage area was the inspiration for KQAD’s call letters.
The Feb. 11, 1971, issue of the Star Herald reported that “all the letter combinations which might allude to Luverne, like KLUV or KLVE, had been taken. The QAD was picked because the station will serve the quad-state areas of Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska.”
In July 1971, the station hosted a grand opening with over 2,500 people in attendance.
In those early years, the radio station hosted major community events, such as a KQAD Winter Sports Show and a spring KQAD Farm Home and Sports Show, both at the armory
KQAD/K101 today
Today the stations employ nine people and continue to serve the tri-state area, with a special focus on Luverne and Rock County, along with Rock Rapids and Lyon County across the border in Iowa.
“Our signal points real nice in that direction so it’s really a natural for us,” Vis, who lives in Rock Rapids, said.
The stations are currently owned by Alpha Media, which is the fourth largest radio company in the country with 250 stations in 22 states.
“There are benefits to being part of such a large corporation,” Vis said.
“The assets they can give us are fantastic, but they trust us to make the right decisions for what works in Luverne. They are locally driven, which is great.”
Vis has worked at the stations since 2006, starting in sales and advancing to general manager when Steve Graphenteen retired.
“Steve and I actually switched jobs the last year, which made the transition much easier,” Vis said. “I learned a lot about how to manage a radio station from Steve.”
There have also been a number of on-air talent changes in recent years.
When longtime morning broadcasters Bruce Thalhuber and Ron Cote retired at about the same time in 2019, it was both a challenge and an opportunity for KQAD and K101.
“We lost some great guys then, and you can’t replace that kind of history and connections to the community easily,” Vis said.
“But we’ve also been really lucky to have the right guys fall into place at the right time.”
Those replacements include Rick Freitag and Jay Kelly, who are now hosting the K101 and KQAD morning shows respectively.
Freitag joined K101 in 2019 and has a passion for music and radio, according to Vis.
“He started in radio, went to another career, and then chose to come back to radio because he just loves it, and listeners can tell that,” Vis said.
Kelly has done radio work in Worthington and Luverne for years but just recently joined KQAD full time.
“Jay’s got a great voice for radio and is just a natural,” Vis said. “He also does a lot of play-by-play for us; we’re lucky to have him.”
Freitag is also known for hosting K101’s popular “Country Wax Museum” show on Saturday mornings from 6 a.m. to noon.
“Rick creates that whole show and gets up to 40 listener request calls a week,” Vis said.
“He’s a record collector and just a music guy; it’s the perfect show for him.”
Sunday morning’s country gospel program, hosted by Jim Ouverson, is another K101 mainstay.
“Jim knows so many gospel groups and plays some local music from his own collections on the gospel show,” Vis said.
“Overall, these guys just have so much fun doing what they do, it’s refreshing.”
He points out that local radio is much more than playing music.
“We aren’t just about entertainment like big city radio,” he said. “We are an information resource.”
“Even though they aren’t our biggest revenue makers, our local news, sports, school calendars, and community calendars are some of the most important things we do,” Vis said.